As the 18-month closure of Chattanooga’s downtown riverfront nears, event organizers are planning for a 2027 without Ross’s Landing.
The riverfront is set to close in November for a redevelopment project that aims to make the park a space residents use more regularly year-round while still accommodating the various events held there each year. With a projected reopening of May 2028, several event organizers are looking to move their events elsewhere in the city for 2027 while at least one is considering leaving Chattanooga altogether.
Earlier this summer, organizers of Head of the Hooch, one of the largest rowing regattas in the nation, announced they were considering moving the event out of Chattanooga due to the riverfront redevelopment. This past week, Head of the Hooch organizers said they would move the event to Columbus, Georgia, should they decide to leave Chattanooga.
“We hope that there’s a positive outcome,” Friends of the Hooch President Kerry Brown said by phone, speaking on the regatta’s future in Chattanooga. “It’s a fantastic city. It’s a great regatta. We’d love to keep staying, and we have choice if we can’t.”